The family of a Hawaii inmate who was murdered at an Arizona jail filed suit against against the state of Hawaii and Corrections Corporation of America, which owns the jail.

Hawaii contracts with CCA to incarcerate some 1,800 local prisoners in Arizona facilities.

Bronson Nunuha was a 26-year-old Hawaii prisoner in Arizona when he was murdered in 2010.

Snippet from the ACLU’s press release:

The suit exposes CCA’s business model of grossly short-staffing prisons and cutting corners in every way possible to make its private prisons profitable.  These systemic practices violated fundamental safety requirements and subjected Hawaii prisoners to rampant gang violence in under-staffed prison units.  Bronson Nunuha was just months away from release on a burglary conviction when CCA forced him to share housing with extremely violent, gang-affiliated prisoners in the same unit. 

A copy of the complaint is available at www.rbg-law.com.